Samurai Shodown! 2

Samurai Shodown! 2 brings to the Neo Geo Pocket Color a weapon-based fighter that always stood apart from fist-fighting games. The pace is slower, spacing matters more, and a single well-timed slash can strip away a huge chunk of health, turning every encounter into a test of patience. The series' iconic cast takes the stage, from Haohmaru and Nakoruru to Genjuro and Hanzo, each carrying their own reach, speed, and way of punishing a careless attack. Besides the usual ladder of opponents, the game offers extra modes and unlockable content that entice repeated playthroughs, and two-player battles over the link cable were among the platform's biggest draws.

Technically, this is one of the console's most visually pleasing games. The compressed character sprites keep sharp, readable weapon movements, so the player can tell when an opponent is winding up a slash even from a few dozen pixels away. The rage system, which gradually charges up attack power, gives matches a dramatic arc where the balance of power can flip entirely in the final seconds of a round. The audio relies on Japanese vocal shouts and music built on traditional motifs that, even in chiptune form, evoke a historical fantasy world full of ghosts and demons.

At the time, the game was praised as proof that even a slower, more tactical genre could be ported to a handheld without losing its essence. Among collectors it remains one of the platform's most sought-after titles and is often mentioned in the same breath as SNK's handheld crossover with Capcom. Today it feels surprisingly modern precisely because of its emphasis on spacing and timing, the things that never age. Anyone looking for a fighter you can think through between tram stops will find here one of the best options handheld consoles ever offered. Individual rounds last seconds, but the decisions within them carry a weight no other handheld fighter of the era ever matched.